Means for sealing shafts



Aug.'4, 1942., s. F. DUPREE, JR 2,291,954 f MEANS FOR SEALING SHAFTS Filed oct. 2, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' 29 -4 2 INVENTOR. 4/

ATTORNEYS.

Aug. 4, 1 942. 5;, F; UPR E, JR 2,291,954

MEANS FOR SEALING 'SHAFT S Filed Oct. 2,1936

. 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS.

Patented Aug. 4, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MEANS non SEALING sm'rs Samuel F. Dupree, .m, Shaker Heights, out Application October z, 1936, Serial No. 103,757

(crass-11) 4 the pulley I2 and fan I: are secured, as by 1 Claim.

This invention relates to means for sealing the shafts of pumps or similar apparatus. used for the circulation of fluids, and has for its general object to provide such'shafts with eflicient means for preventing the passage of fluid thereby. A

further object of the invention is to provide such shafts with sealing means including a spring wherein the spring will be sealed against access of fluid thereto. A still further object of the invention is to prevent this access of circulating fluid to the spring without the necessity for employing sealing rings which are held in close engagement with the shafts with which they cooperate.

Further and more limited objects of the invention will be explained hereinafter and/will be realized by the construction and arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawings wherein Fig. 1 represents a central longitudinal sectional view through a pump body and rotor or impeller having my sealing elements applied thereto, the elements being shown in elevation;

- Fig. 2 an enlarged detail in section through the Fig. 2,showing a modification of my sealing elements; and Fig. 10 is a view, showing a still further modification of the sealing elements.

Describing by reference characters the various parts illustrated in the drawings, and first-with particular reference to Figs. 1-8 inclusive, l represents a pump body detachably secured to the wall 2 of a liquid-containing chamber, which may be the water jacket of an internal combustion engine. The pump body is shown as provided with a chamber 3 communicating with, the water jacket and withan outlet 4 for delivering the water to the radiator.

The pump body is provided with a bore comprising an outboard cylindrical section 5 and an inboard cylindrical section 5 of smaller diameter than section 5. B and 6* denote bushings which aremounted, respectively, in the bore sections 5, 5, and 8, t denote a shaft which is mounted in said bushings and which is provided at its outboard end with a hub 9 secured thereto by means of screw bolts ll. l5 denotes the rotor or impeller of the pump, the same having a hub it which is securedto the shaft by means of a pin l5. It will be noted that the hub of the rotor is'provided with a cylindrical chamber l1 extending thereinto from its outboard face, the said chamber having a bottom wall l8. The outboard end l6 of the hub I6 is formed as an annular wall provided with slots l9 exte'nding-thereinto; and the adjacent central annular shoulder of the pump body projects thereinto, as shown at 20. The pump body, with the bore sections 5, 5" and the bearing bushings 6, 6 is of a standard construction adopted by one of the leading makers of automobiles,as is the case with the shaft 8, 8 It will be noted that the section 8" of the shaft is of greater diameter than the section 8, an annular shoulder 8 being formed between the two sections. The inboard end of the bushing 6 abuts against the outboard face of a thrust ring 2l,'the inboard face of which ring abuts against the shoulder 8 The thrust ring is driven by means of lugs 2| projecting from said ring, the inboard ends 2| of the said lugs projecting from-the inboard surface of the ring and entering slots 8 in the enlarged portion of 'the shaft adjacent thereto. This thrust ring compensates for thrusts such as may be exerted upon the shaft by the pulley l2 and the fan I3.

22 denotes a receptacle within the pump body from which lubricant is supplied between the bushings 6, ii and the shaft sections 8, 8 by means of ports 23, 23 and 24, 24

The sealing elements which cooperate with the annular shoulder 2|! and the shaft and the chamber l1, l8 will now be described in detail.

25 denotes a sealing ring, which is preferably made of material known to the trade as Bakelite or Micarta, having lugs 25 entering the slots I9 whereby the said ring will be driven by the rotor or. impeller. It will be noted that the inner cylindrical wall 25 of this ring is spaced from the portion 8 of the shaft which it surrounds. The ring 25 is yieldingly pressed against the annular shoulder 20 of the pump body by means of a coiled spring 26 and a ring of'deformable resilient material engaged by said spring and within-which the said spring preferably is located. The spring is mounted within a twopart metallic casing 21, 28 surrounding and spaced from the shaft, the casing in turn bea pin l0, said hub having a flange II to which ing mounted within a channel ring of deformable telescopically mounted within the wall 26". The

inner ends of the walls 21 and 26' do not contact with the adjacent shaft section 8" and the end of the cylindrical wall 2! which is remote from the wall 21 is provided with a plurality of short radially outwardly extending walls 21 separated by'slots 2'! while the end of the wall 28 which is remote from the wall 26' is provided with a plurality of short radially inwardly extending walls 28 and slots 28 therebetween. By this construction, the casing. sections may be assembled by passing the projecting walls 28 through the slots 21 and by thereafter giving a partial rotation to either or both of the casing sections, whereby the sections are detachably connected by a bayonet-joint construction.

The spring, with its enclosing two-part casing is inserted within a channeled sealing ring made of deformable and resilient material capable of withstanding the action of the liquid which is circulated by the rotor or impeller. For this purpose, I prefer to use in the construction of this ring a synthetic rubber composition known to the trade as -Duprene. 29 denotes the outer wall of the last mentioned ring and 29" the radially inwardly extending side flanges or members thereof. Each of these flanges is provided with concentric corrugations 28 7 The spring 26 having been inserted within its casing 21, 28, the spring and easing constitute a unit which can be inserted without diiiiculty within the ring 2926". The ring 29-46 with the spring and easing therein, is inserted within the chamber l1, l8, with the corrugated inboard flange of the ring 29 bearing against the wall l8 and the corrugated outboard flange bearing against the 'ring 25. When the sealing-ring as- I6, thereby permitting the said ring to travel in either direction to compensate for wear upon the thrust surfaces.

In Fig. 9, there is shown a modification of the construction of the sealing elements shown in the preceding views. The portions of the-pump body, shaft, and impeller which appear in Fig. 9 are identical with the portions of the same which are shown in the preceding views and are designated by the same numerals. The ring 25 is shown as bearing with its outboard face against the annular shoulder 20 provided at the inboard end of the pump body. However, instead of housing thespring 26 within a channeled ring consisting of a unitary body of resilient and deformable material, I house the same in a composite channeled ring comprising two side members or flanges 32 of deformable resilient material, such as Duprene, the side members or flanges being constructed in the same manner as the side flanges of the Duprene ring 2929 and each having concentric corrugations 32', those on the inboard member or flange engaging the wall l8 and those on the outboard member or flange engaging the inboard face of the ring 25. The side members or flanges 32 are con- .nected by a lengthwise expansible and contractsary to vulcanize the flanges 33 into the slots sembly has thus been inserted into the chamber l1, IE, it can be retained therein by means of an outwardly expanding snap ring 30 mounted in a groove 3| within and adjacent to the outboard end of the hub I6.

. When the impeller and pump body are assembled, as shown, the spring :6 will be' compressed, as shown in Fig. 2, and the lugs 25 will be within the slots is but between the inboard ends of the same and the ring 6|, whereby the said ring may float as longitudinal thrusts are imparted to the shaft by the fan.

As the parts wear, the spring 26 expands, this movement being permitted by the telescopic conbers will be only suflicient to accommodate the maximum amount of permissible wear upon the sealing surfaces.

32 since the expansive efl'ort' of the spring 26 will be suflicient to maintain these slots closed.

The opposite ends ofthe spring 26 are shown asbearing against the radiallyextending flanges said members toward the shaft. Similar retaining rings or washers may be used with the side flanges or members 29'.

The composite channeled ring 32-43 operates in the same manner as does the channeled ring 26-29 in protecting the spring 26 from access of fluid, while the spring and the said comthe shaft and the interior of the channeled ring.

as well as the spring, against access oi fluid thereto between the inner wall 26 'of the ring 26 and the shaft.

the expansible and contractible casing 32 are vul- Inboard thrusts exerted upon. the shaft 6, a

5 1-8 inclusive form an assembly which can be the outboard end of the bushing 6, while outboard thrusts due to the fan I! will be compensated by' the thrust washer 2|. The parts In Fig. .10 I'have shown a still further modification of my invention wherein the ends 26 of canized to the outer cylindrical surfaces of the members 32. In all other respects, the construction shown in this view is identical with that shown in Fig. 9.

Thetwo-piece casing and spring shown in Figs.

readily inserted into the ring 26-26" which will retain the spring under a partial tension, and the ring, with the casing'and spring therein can. be kept in. stock, ready for assembly when needed are so proportioned. c s and arranged 7 and without unduly expanding the deformable that, when the hub 9 8nd h n 6 re n wnand resilient ring 29-29". When assembled in tact and the thrust washer 2| is in contact with the shoulder 8 and the inboard end of the bushing 6, the lugs 25 of the sealing ring 26 will be the environment shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the spring and the ring 26-26 are compressed, while the parts 01' the casing are of suflicient approximately midway oi the length'of the slots l\ength to accommodate all desirable wear up to channeled ring which encloses the spring are provided with concentric corrugations. lhese corrugations are important in providing aneffective seal against the passageof fluid radially inwardly between the sides and the surfaces which they respectively engage.

While I have shown my sealing means associated with one of the standard constructions of pump body and rotor or impeller now on the market, it will be obvious that th same can be used with other standard constructions including those wherein the chamber for the sealing elements isprovided within the pump body and wherein the rotor is provided with an annular shoulder engaging the inboard face of the ring 25. An example of this construction is shown in my co-pending application Serial No. 98,220,

filed August 27, 1936, now Patent No. 2,157,597, issued May 9, 1939.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

A composite sealing element comprising a longitudinally expansible and contractible channeled ring, a two-piece casing having radially extending side walls mounted within the sides of the said ring and having telescoping-cylindrical walls, and a coil spring having its opposite ends engaging the side wall of said casing the end of the inner telescoping cylindricaltwall havinga plurality of spaced radially outwardly projecting walls'and the over-lapping end of the outer telescoping wall having spaced radially inwardly projecting walls whereby the said casing sections may be assembled by a bayonet-joint movement and theprojecting walls may limit the expansion of the spring. 20

SAMUEL F. DUPREE, JR. 

